Backpack that quickly turns into a boat makes the great outdoors even greater

Trekking around the great outdoors can sometimes be more trouble than it’s worth, no matter how enthusiastic you are.

“[A few years ago], myself and a friend were on a camping trip,” entrepreneur Pete Flood told Digital Trends. “We decided to go duck hunting, which meant carrying a canoe over two miles. It was early in the morning and extremely cold. Our hands were getting numb and we had to keep stopping because the canoe was heavy. In the end, we counted about half an hour on the water before it was time to turn around and come back. That seemed like a whole lot of effort for very little reward. At that point, I figured that there had to be a better solution.”

Flood put his money where his mouth is, emerging as the co-creator of the K-Pak, a compatible “skin on frame” boat-in-a-backpack from the aptly named Folding Boat Company.

It’s a clever concept, which gives outdoor enthusiasts a surprisingly durable, 9-foot-3-inch boat that can be fully assembled in less than four minutes.

To make this possible, the K-Pak uses a clever system centered around an anodized ergonomic aluminum frame that folds up inside a puncture-resistant poly fabric skin. Tipping the scales at just 21 lbs, the whole backpack isn’t any heavier than a regular trekking backpack loaded up with gear. It may not be lightweight enough that you’ll forget about it altogether, but it certainly beats the scenario that prompted Pete Flood to start investigating the technology in the first place.

If you’re tempted to get hold of a K-Pak boat of your own, you can do so from the company’s website, where a unit will set you back $895.

After that, you just need to find a great duck-hunting lake and you’re all set!